My cory cat is dying :(

[Ridge]

I have had these poor corycats in a bare qt tank for almost 2 months due to some creepy red worms that I have not been able to identify. The smaller one started suffering from fin rot about 2 weeks ago. I tried paraguard at first but it only seemed to be getting worse so I resorted to large daily water changes which seemed to slow down the fin rot. I considered treating with kanaplex but I wasn't sure how they would handle it and everyone says clean water can cure almost anything. Well last night i found him laying on his side gasping. His spine is crooked, he is emaciated and his eyes have sunken into his skull As far as I can tell he is not eating (he never eats while im watching) He is still able to swim around and sit up right, but 20 minutes later he will be lying on his side again. I am afraid I cannot continue with these waterchanges, as they would probably be too stressful to him at this point. I am also afraid that it is too late to treat with kanaplex. I do not have the tools for euthanasia. What do I do? wait for him to die? I have already said my prayers, what else is there to do?

 

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

How long have you had the fish for?

How long has their tank been set up for?
Is there a filter on/ in the tank?

Have you checked the water quality for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, general hardness (GH) and pH?
If yes, what are the results in numbers?

Can you describe the red worms?

Can you post a picture of the fish that clearly shows any issues?
A short 20 second video clip can be helpful in some cases.

What are you feeding the fish and how often do you feed them?

 

[Ridge]

I have had him for about 2 months, he never made it out of qt. The tank has a filter which i seeded with media from the tank that I was planning on moving them to. Unfortunately He passed away last night. ammonia nitrite and nitrate were all 0 (which was expected due to my daily waterchanges) Ph was 7.5 and gh was 120 ppm. Correct me if I am wrong but I am pretty sure these parameters should be fine for corys. I am not sure what happened, his fins were just starting to get better The red worms would start off tiny, but I found one about 2 inches long. Most of them were living in the filter, so I believe they were beneficial.

 

[Colin_T]

The water seems fine for captive bred Cories.

The red worms in the filter or gravel are normally fine and don't affect the fish.

 

[Byron]

I canot add anything beyond what Colin posted for the issue, but I will just comment on euthanasia methods.

The easiest, safest and most humane method for the fish is to net it out into a folded over paper towel, fold the towel around the fish, and give it a couple of hard whacks with your hand (the fish in the towel on a hard surface like a counter). The fish is instantly dead without suffering beyond what all fish experience being netted.

No other method is quicker for the fish.

 

[Colin_T]

whack em on the head with a rolling pin, not your hand.